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Monday, December 20, 2010

How many UT administrators does it take to change a light bulb?

a. First, there has to be an administrative committee to discuss and decide what to do. This means a bonus for everyone on the committee, which means they also have to decide what staff and programs to cut to be able to afford the bonuses.

b. The committee decides to hire an outside consulting firm to assess the situation. This means more cuts at UT to pay the members of the consulting firm--per person, more money for a week than most faculty make in a month.

c. The committee decides to change not just the faulty bulb, but all the bulbs at UT! This involves changing them around and renaming them in the process! Forget the cost! Why bother figuring that out? ! Some that have served faithfully for years, truly illuminating UT, are pitched out, and the ones with a slightly brownish tinge are relocated to the best, most glorious sites.

d. This leaves UT in the dark--which the administration likes very much, but which the faculty rightly see as profoundly dangerous, and call the leader on it. The leader sheds crocodile tears about being grieved that it has come this far--not because his actions endanger UT and threaten to leave it in a shambles, but because the faculty had the audacity to call him on his 'misbehavior.' And, amazingly, he manages to convince a court judge that what he did was right--as people at UT stumble around in the darkness he left them in.

e. Actually, just skip all that stuff above--why bother changing the light bulb at all? The more UT is kept in the dark, the better the administration likes it.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Speaking of changing light bulbs, we got all new paper towel and soap dispensers in all of our restrooms this week. I'd rather use the old ones and see some jobs saved with that money...

Anonymous said...

See jobs saved with one-time maintenance dollars? You have no understanding of how a budget works.

Anonymous said...

To A@8:11 pm

Not around UT I don't. Admininstrators opportunistically "tax" the 400 + Comm students with a fee that comes out of the air--and which no one else has to pay. And they hire consultants and start mythical programs in perpetual motion. And money is removed form the A&S branch, and then hire new V provosts with no educational experience and buddies and cronies. You are right. I have no idea how they get away with this abuse of trust that you call "a budget."

Anonymous said...

Tax? Hah! The Board mulcted the Communication majors. Simple as that. It helps pay the bonuses, consultants and VP salaries.

New Broom Governor said...

It's Christmas at UT every day for upper level administration. And to be clear, they have not been giving but getting.

Anonymous said...

I have no illusions about the new governor, but I sure would like to see him hold administrators' feet over the fire like THEY have been doing to faculty and staff. THEY are the ones who need to get their pay seriously cut, to get downsized, and gave somebody crawling all over their behinds to find out if they are doing a good enough job to earn their six digit salaries and bonuses! I would like to see the lot of THEM have to give an accounting for their time and what they do!